On Day 13 of my self-quarantining and social distancing, I felt the urge to write an essay called, “Today I Will Cry.” I was in a funk. Two weeks seemed long enough, but the strange times were continuing.
Today is Day 21, April Fool’s Day. I woke up with the urge to write, “Today I Will Laugh.”
Our traditional family joke was to wake up the kids saying, “Look outside. There’s been a freak snow storm!” This was funniest when we lived in Memphis and Birmingham. In Maine, it wasn’t so funny because we actually had a blizzard one year on April 1. I haven’t seen or heard any jokes today. Maybe the times are too serious for any pranks., but surely a little laughter is good medicine even during these challenging times.
April Fool’s Day is a great day to laugh, so I have compiled some resources you might enjoy if you desire a chuckle or two on this minor holiday. It really is okay (and recommended) that you laugh each day during the #stayhome and #socialdistance times.
I love cartoons and essays in the New Yorker. Check out their humor page this week for an alternate way to think about these times.
When I walk Leo, the dog, I often listen to podcasts. My favorite humorous podcast is Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend. I love Conan’s self-deprecating humor as well as the hyperbole about his stardom, popularity, education and more.
When I asked daughter Elizabeth what she goes to when she wants a laugh, she immediately said, Schitt’s Creek, a fabulous show with Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, and more. You can find it on Netflix.
Sometimes, going to Youtube can be the best way to get a laugh. Try out Ellen with Gladys, her funniest guest ever and the Carol Burnett dentist skit with Harvey Korman and Tim Conway. It still holds up after all these years!
I love listening to David Sedaris reading any of his essays or books, but if you want a quick laugh, check out his reading of one of his funniest (slightly inappropriate) essays on the David Letterman Show.
If you are housebound with children and need something humorous with them close by, my standby is Mahna Mahna from 1969 and Pee Wee Herman’s Breakfast Machine.
For an oldie, but goodie, that the whole family might enjoy, check out Red Skelton’s participation in a eurhythmics class (ballet) in the 1944 movie, Bathing Beauty. Skelton’s character is enrolled as a student in a women’s college, and the college administrators want him to leave, so they put him in this class. The first part of the clip sets up the story for the funniest antics that begin at 5:15. To top it off, Skelton is a good dancer!
Last, but not least, enjoy some laughter yoga exercises. Yes, you heard me, here is a whole new way of thinking about yoga.
No matter what, I wish for you a little laughter on this April 1.
P.S. Daughter Rebecca texted while I was editing this to tell me it was snowing. It wasn’t. April Fool’s!